Film Room: Arkansas vs Kansas State

Joe Adams just makes plays. (Photo: Icon SMI)

NEPD Staff Writer: Doug Kyed

Maybe it wasn’t the Big-12-SEC match up some people wanted this year, but it did prove that Kansas State could hold it’s own against a team from “the best conference in college football.” Arkansas prevailed, and had far more Draft prospects for this season.

#4 Jarius Wright, WR, Arkansas
-Has nice footwork at the line to get separation from his DB.
-Fires off the line from the slot to catch a perfect deep ball in stride over his shoulder. Gets nice separation from Hartman and Brown.
-Shows really tight technique on curl route, tough to bring down for his small frame.
-Lining up wide, gets off the line fast to catch a ball in stride down the sideline.
-Showed off big play ability in his final game as a senior with a huge 45 yard play. He’s had an incredible senior year that’s really boosted his draft stock. Has the speed to make an impact at the next level, especially from the slot. I see him as a third round prospect.

#3 Joe Adams, WR, Arkansas
-Back to return punts.
-Lined up in the slot, catches first target into his body on a short curl route.
-Takes out a punt he probably shouldn’t have, but also shows some nice moves to at least get five yards out of it.
-Incredible punt returner, just brought one back for a TD. Fits himself between very small blocks, accelerates through the hole and away from everyone.
-Loses his balance on deep route, lets ball clang off his hands.
-Makes a catch off his finger tips and shows off his agility taking it almost ten yards after the grab.
-Catches the ball away from his body, tries to do too much after the catch, winds up losing yards.
-Makes a sliding diving catch to come back to ball.
-Showed off great hands against Kansas State, has the athleticism to make an impact a number of ways in the NFL. Even as just a return specialist, he could have value. I see him as a late third/early fourth round pick. He could do a lot of damage after the catch in a slot role.

#85 Greg Childs, WR, Arkansas
-Runs a short curl and has to come back for the ball. Can’t get away from defender for 6 yard gain.
-Catches a ball high away from his body on out route, shows off his size, wide wingspan makes him hard to defend.
-Made another catch high above his head on curl route. QBs will love throwing high to him in the pros. Snatches the ball out of the air.
-Has great hands, could work on sharpening his routes. Showed some nice strength and moves after the catch to get more yards.
-Doesn’t get a lot of separation from DBs, but has a lot of strength, fights defenders off from the ball.
-Childs has had some injury issues during his college career, but if he can prove he’s over those this draft season, he could be a nice sleeper pick. Big strong receiver who shows nice hands catching the ball away from his body. He could work on his route running and he’s not an explosive athlete like his teammates, but he could make a really solid possession receiver.

#8 Tyler Wilson, QB, Arkansas
-Overthrows Adams on first throw. Jumped a little when he threw the ball.
-Evaded the rush, and dumped the ball off to his RB but wasn’t enough for the first down. Had receivers open, but didn’t have the time to find them.
-Has a tendency to wind up for short passes. Has to tighten up mechanics.
-Throws a nice tight spiral on deep pass, ill advised throw though. Double covered RB.
-Winds up again on screen pass.
-Nice athleticism on scramble in the red zone.
-Scrambles again for another nice gain. Good plus to his game.
-Throws another nice deep ball, throws off his front foot, hits Wright perfectly in stride for a TD.
-Fakes the play action well, throws another nice deep ball.
-Fumbles on scramble, doesn’t even let the defender hit the ball.
-Needs to protect himself better on QB scrambles.
-Shows really impressive accuracy on deeper throws, hits his receiver in stride.
-Throws another great deep ball into the corner of the end zone, dropped by TE.
-Does a great job delivering a throw under heavy pressure for a completion.
-Has considered going pro, would help to have another year at Arkansas, could be an early first round pick if he stays. He can make all the throws, but he can get fluttered in the pocket at times and tends to wind up more than he needs to. I’d like to see him get the ball out faster, but he shows a lot of promise. If he came out this year, I see him as a late second/early third round pick.

#34 Jerry Franklin, ILB, Arkansas
-Stays with Klein well behind the lines and hits him for a four yard gain. Didn’t show off tremendous technique in tackle.
-Doesn’t show off a ton of athleticism. Looks slow on the field.
-Gets blocked out too easily by tackle on QB scramble. Should have held his ground to prevent first down.
-Doesn’t change direction very well when trying to make an open field tackle.
-Whiffs on tackle and doesn’t show a lot of burst on QB scramble.
-I worry a lot about his speed and athleticism, has a decent first step and reads plays well, but has trouble getting to them. Actually pretty good in pass coverage, but might have trouble staying with more athletic TEs. Fifth or sixth round pick.